In Part 1, we started the countdown towards May 1: The Day After government tax credit subsidies expire for housing purchases. Leading up to that date will be a frenzy of purchases and sales that will make it “look like” the market is bouncing back. But...

As a resident of Massachusetts, I admit we do things a little different up here. Yes, we’re the colony that launched the first tea parties. We recently revived them to remind government that we haven’t forgotten our Founding principles . But it looks like...

Surprise, surprise: Home sales plummeted in December 2009. Certainly, this isn’t news to the consumer, although housing economists seem to be surprised at how fast and far the month-over-month numbers declined. Now the worry is about a potential second market...

As recently noted in this column, FHA is a mess. The Federal Housing Authority has been backing loans like a Madoff, and their scrutiny of borrowers has been just as good. With a wink-wink, nod-nod, FHA has come dangerously close to disaster, with significant...

Readers of this column long know of our contrarian opinion of most traditional real estate practices. None more frequently irks us than the idea that all problems in real estate can be solved by increasing the body count, er, recruiting. Even amidst the worst downturn...